Mulindwa: Uganda not ready for local coach

Lawrence Mulindwa, the man who took a huge gamble in recruiting Micho Sredojevic following his sacking by Rwanda in 2013 thinks Uganda Cranes is not ready for a local coach.

With several names of Ugandan coaches being thrown around, ex-Fufa president Mulindwa has offered his counsel on the way forward while looking at why he picked Micho.

After Micho “terminated” his contract over unpaid dues on Saturday, his assistant Moses Basena, Mike Mutebi (KCCA) and Sam Ssimbwa (Sofapaka, Kenya) have been rumoured as replacements.

“The federation must go for a foreign coach who will help mentor his Ugandan deputy to take over in three years,” Mulindwa said in an interview.

“At the moment, all local coaches have political inclinations and are not strong enough to take on that mantle,” he stressed.

His club, Vipers, is the only one with a foreign coach in Portuguese Miguel Jorge Duarte Da Costa.

Mulindwa also thinks the federation shouldn’t rush into replacing Micho permanently even if the national team has key engagements on the horizon.

“If they rush, what Micho has built may be watered down in a second if the next manager comes in with drastic changes,” he noted.

Mulindwa worked with Micho for three months before Moses Magogo took over Fufa presidency in August 2014. He left assured that the Serbian was steering Ugandan football to another level. Why did Fufa pick the former SC Villa coach at a time when many could have thought that Micho was a poisoned chalice?

“I recruited him basing on the fact that he had experience in African football and the tremendous achievements he had with SC Villa,” Mulindwa told Daily Monitor yesterday.

“When we sacked Bobby Williamson, Uganda needed a coach who would scout talent and make the team competitive.”